Photo caption: Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Energy, Olu Verheijen
The Federal Government on Tuesday said it had fulfilled all commitments under the first tranche of its power sector debt financing programme, disclosing that it deployed about N501bn to settle part of the long-standing legacy debts owed to electricity generation companies and paid the first bond coupon on schedule.
It disclosed that N333bn had so far been paid to eight participating GenCos covering 17 power plants under the first phase of the power sector debt settlement programme.
The government said the successful execution of Series I of the Power Sector Multi-Instrument Issuance Programme had restored investor confidence in Nigeria’s electricity market and laid the foundation for the launch of a N729bn Series II bond to deepen liquidity across the power value chain.
The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Energy, Olu Verheijen, disclosed this on Tuesday at the NBET Finance Company Plc Series II Bond Issue Investors’ Forum held in Abuja.
According to her, the Tinubu administration deliberately chose to demonstrate credibility by honouring every obligation made to investors before returning to the capital market for another round of fundraising.
She said, “Every successful capital market tells the same story. Investors return where governments keep their promises. And today’s lecture is exactly about that. President Bola Tinubu’s administration has demonstrated, beyond doubt, its commitment to making a clean break from the fiscal dysfunction that once defined Nigeria’s power sector.
“Through bold policy decisions and disciplined execution, we are converting an unsustainable liability into a bankable, well-governed investment opportunity that the market can trust.”
Verheijen explained that rather than merely restructuring debts on paper, the government had begun converting legacy liabilities into fresh liquidity capable of supporting investments across the electricity value chain.
She said, “We are converting yesterday’s liabilities into today’s liquidity and tomorrow’s investment capacity. That liquidity, if sustained, will strengthen the entire electricity value chain, improve operational performance, and restore confidence across the sector. That is precisely what the Presidential Power Sector Financial Reforms Programme was established to achieve under the Renewed Hope Agenda.”
She stressed that credibility, not promises, was driving the government’s reform agenda. According to her, “Markets do not reward promises. They reward performance. And that is why we deliberately chose execution before expansion.”
Providing details of the first issuance, Verheijen said the Federal Government deployed approximately N501bn into the settlement programme in February 2026.
She said, “Series I delivered on its promise. In February 2026, the Federal Government deployed approximately N501bn, N300bn in cash and N201bn through non-cash bond instruments, addressing approximately 22 per cent of the settlement obligations under executed settlement agreements, with the balance to be covered through Series II and subsequent issuances.”
She added that N333bn had been settled to eight participating generation companies covering 17 power plants. “We have met our obligations on schedule. The first Series I coupon, about N63.5bn, was paid in full on July 14, 2026,” she said.
Verheijen said the payment had strengthened investor confidence in the electricity market. “Bankability doesn’t begin in financial markets. It begins with governments that honour their contracts, that meet their obligations, that create predictable rules. Capital follows credibility,” she added.
The Acting Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc, Johnson Akinnawo, said the success of Series I demonstrated that Nigerian power sector debt instruments could attract investor confidence.
He said, “When we came to the market with Series I, we did not present it as a routine capital raise. We presented it as a test of a proposition, that Nigerian legacy power sector debt could be resolved through disciplined, transparent capital market instruments rather than endless promises.”
Akinnawo added that improved liquidity across the electricity value chain was already evident. “The evidence of your trust is visible today in improved liquidity across the value chain. Nigerian power sector paper has proven that it is bankable,” he said.
He disclosed that the government was seeking to raise approximately N729bn under Series II to continue settling verified legacy obligations and stabilising the electricity market.
The Power Sector Multi-Instrument Issuance Programme was created under the Presidential Power Sector Financial Reforms Programme to address legacy debts owed to electricity generation companies, which have constrained liquidity across the electricity value chain.
Under Series I, the government raised and deployed N501bn, comprising N300bn in cash and N201bn in non-cash bond instruments, settling about 22 per cent of verified obligations under executed settlement agreements. The Series II issuance is expected to continue the settlement programme and improve the bankability of Nigeria’s power sector.
